It came into operation at Modena Polyclinic a new Linear Accelerator for Radiotherapy, made possible thanks to a significant investment of 2,630,025.28 euros financed by the PNRR. The amount includes 1,773,636.00 euros for the purchase of the equipment and 856,389.28 euros for the bunker adaptation works, thus allowing the replacement of the old Siemens LINAC from 2001. This sophisticated radiotherapy technology, based on IGRT , allows oncology treatments with unprecedented precision, significantly reducing treatment times by guiding the patient’s images directly into the treatment room. The installation work, which began in May 2023, was successfully completed in May 2024.
The Modena Polyclinic manages approximately 1,500 new cases of cancer annually, out of a total of approximately 6,000 patients followed each year. Of these, approximately 1,500 receive radiotherapy treatments and 2,300 have PET scans performed by the Nuclear Medicine Polyclinic, which serves the entire province. The city authorities were present at the inauguration ceremony of the new linear accelerator. The Modena provincial radiotherapy network now uses a Tomotherapy and four linear accelerators: three at the Modena Polyclinic and one at the Carpi Hospital.
This advanced technological equipment represents a significant step forward in the ability to respond to clinical needs, offering more effective and safe treatments, and improving the efficiency in managing waiting lists. The new equipment not only strengthens operational capacity, but also marks a fundamental stage in the continuous evolution of radiotherapy techniques, guaranteeing patients in Modena and its province access to the best treatments available.
“Modena boasts approximately 1 linear accelerator for every 140,000 inhabitants – congratulates Dr Claudio Vagnini, General Director of the AOU of Modena – this result is the result of the large investments of recent years, also made thanks to the precious support of the business world, volunteers and citizens as a whole. This further upgrade of our technology allows not only more precise therapies but also greater patient comfort, in line with an increasingly human approach to the treatment paths that our company has been undertaking for some time.”
“Biological knowledge now allows us to understand the cellular conformation of the tumor and to choose the most suitable mix of therapies to combat it – adds Doctor Giuseppe Longo, Director of the Department of Oncology and Hematology – The objective is to create increasingly personalized therapies based on the tumor and the patient’s body’s response to treatment, thanks also to the combination with PET-CT already present in nuclear medicine, in able to evaluate not only the size of the tumor but also its evolution during treatment. This new acquisition allows us to work in an even more integrated manner between oncologists, radiation oncologists, nuclear medicine doctors, surgeons and radiologists.”
“The linear accelerator – explains Dr Patrizia Giacobazzi, Acting Director of Radiotherapy Oncology – represents the fourth device for radiotherapy treatments, integrating with Tomotherapy and significantly enhancing our clinical response capacity in the oncology and neuro-oncology sectors. This innovative linear accelerator will significantly improve the therapeutic path of patients included in regional and territorial PDTAs, guaranteeing greater appropriateness and safety of treatments. Furthermore, it will have a positive impact on the ergonomic and efficient management of waiting lists. The advanced technology that characterizes our accelerators allows us to offer the most modern and cutting-edge therapies in both Modena and Carpi, making the treatments interchangeable if necessary. This not only ensures continuity of care, but also an optimization of resources and a reduction in waiting times for patients.”
“The equipment acquired – adds Eng. Sonia Cecoli acting director of the Single Clinical Engineering Service – is part of the plan for the development and efficiency of the oncology patient pathways of the Hospital. It is in fact an Elekta Mod. Versa HD accelerator similar to the other 3 Elekta accelerators already installed in the Company and therefore totally compatible and interchangeable with other systems already in use in Radiotherapy. Furthermore, the adaptation of the systems and the Bunker for energies up to 10 MegaVolts has made it possible to align it with all the other bunkers with the same level of usable energies, making it fully interchangeable with the other accelerators from a clinical point of view, a particularly important aspect for guarantee continuity of treatment, especially in the case of malfunctions and sudden machine stops”.
“The availability of high-precision and speed treatments, the result of investments in recent years in computing capacity and technological integration, is revolutionizing the integration between radiotherapy and systemic therapy. These advances are opening new frontiers and therapeutic models of ‘Quasi Real-Time Planning and Treatment’ – explains Dr. Gabriele Guidi, Director of Health Physics – The new linear accelerator allows accurate control of respiratory movement, minimizing irradiation of healthy tissues and maximizing the dose delivered to the tumor. This technology is particularly strategic in the treatment of the left breast, reducing irradiation of the heart. Furthermore, the investment enhances equitable and efficient access to advanced stereotactic treatments (SBRT) for complex pathologies such as the pancreas, lung, brain and prostate, significantly reducing the number of therapeutic sessions needed by patients. This advanced technology represents a significant step forward towards more precise and personalized medicine, ensuring better results and faster recovery times.”
“The new equipment – adds Eng. Marco Martignon of the Single Clinical Engineering Service – is also able to carry out “conformal” organ therapy for tumor masses with more complex geometry, using the IMRT technique which modulates the intensity of the radiation to the target and neighboring organs as well as advanced IMRT systems such as VMAT which allows a highly conformal dose distribution to the organ with a reduction in harmful effects and a notable reduction in treatment time. The equipment acquired is particularly complete and equipped with a table with a high number of degrees of freedom and a system for verifying the constant positioning of the target directly in the examination room using the “CBCT” technique, as well as boasting a constant control system for the positioning of the target. patient through the use of cameras that also allow the patient’s movements to be intercepted during treatment.”
The system is integrated into the hospital’s IT network managed by the Information Technology Service, directed by Eng. Mario Lugli, which underlines: “from the point of view of IT resources for calculating treatment plans, storing them and exchanging data between the different components of the treatment network, radiotherapy constitutes the most demanding challenge for the company IT system . The speed and operational continuity of the infrastructure must be guaranteed, with a view to continuously updating the basic components as well as preventing possible damage from cyber attacks. For this purpose, the computing and storage capacity of the servers and available storage has been enhanced, thanks to other PNRR funding dedicated to the computerization of hospitals. The objective shared by all is to minimize the inconvenience for certainly fragile patients, even in the event of a malfunction of one of the components of the system”.
